Writer. Bisexual. Fan of cartoons and dogs.

1 Like = 1 Fact About my WIP Meme

Over the holidays I did one of the many rampant memes that were making their way around Twitter. Specifically the “1 Like = 1 Fact About a WIP”. I threw it up on my timeline with low expectations but was pleasantly surprised by the amount of people who got in on it!

I decided to focus on The Star and the Ocean (natch) and I really enjoyed some of the random facts I was able to share about the story. Some people really found them interesting so I thought I’d share them here too.

10 Random Facts About The Star and the Ocean

The Star and the Ocean is a story I’ve been working on conceptually since my early teens (like, since I was 13-years old!)

TSATO, when it’s all said and done, will be two or three books long.

Despite being the narrative character, May wasn’t even part of the story originally. Discovering her brought the whole story together.

Originally TSATO was going to be Audrey’s story but when I realized what was going to happen to her I wasn’t sure how to write it.

Audrey is named after Audrey Hepburn, a nod to my love of Old Hollywood (a love I decided to share with May)

May’s origin story, while terrible, was originally way more depressing. When I finally started writing I couldn’t bare to do that to her.

The character of Welkin is inspired my favourite childhood character, Geno from Super Mario RPG 🌟

When I visualize May’s brother, Kai, I imagine a guy I met in Maui named Jay. He taught me how to play ukulele.

May’s adoptive family loves her very, very much and I always worry that I’m not giving them enough opportunity to show that.

Random fact for you: it was really, really important for me to make sure May and Em’s relationship demonstrates healthy examples of respecting boundaries and communication. I wanted to use May’s conflicted feelings over intimacy earlier in the story as a way to normalize saying no, and that it’s okay to change your mind (and, from the partner’s perspective, to respect those wishes). I hope I pulled it off!